Colorado
Colorado’s New Speed Cameras Can’t Be Outsmarted by Waze or Radar Detectors for Good Reason
- Colorado has launched an automated speed camera program on a stretch of I-25, where cameras calculate average speed versus a single instant reading.
- The cameras make radar detectors and alerts from apps such as Waze obsolete, but they’ve greatly reduced excessive speeds in high-risk areas like work zones.
- Violators face a $75 fine mailed to their registered address, with no points added to their license; vehicles without license plates can evade fines.
Since 2023, the Colorado Department of Transportation has had the power to implement speed cameras in what it deems high-risk corridors where speeding is prevalent, such as work zones. The Colorado Speed Enforcement Program has been used in the past to better patrol a stretch of Colorado Highway 119 between Boulder and Longmont during construction, and it’s now popping up along a stretch of I-25 south of Fort Collins, about 35 miles north of Denver, where workers are adding new express lanes.
Speeding in construction zones has obvious dangers for drivers and workers, as well as law enforcement. Using automated detection is easier and safer than trying to patrol construction zones, which tend to have narrow lanes and little or no usable shoulders.
Enforcement for the five-mile corridor began on April 2. Prior to that, there was a 30-day warning period during which would-be violators received a notice but no fine by mail. Before monetary penalties went into effect, CDOT saw a 90 percent reduction of excessive speed in the targeted zone.
Waze May Not Help
Alerts from apps like Waze that warn you to slow down for speed cameras won’t necessarily save you from a fine here. Instead of taking an instant speed reading at one location like radar-based units, the system uses pairs of cameras—officially automated vehicle identification systems—set a distance apart that snap photos of each car, specifically its license plates. Average speed over the stretch is then calculated using the time it took to cover the known distance.
If that average is over the posted speed limit—some outlets are reporting a grace threshold of 10 mph—a bill of $75 for the civil penalty will be mailed to the vehicle’s registered address. In part because the system doesn’t know who was driving at the time, the owner and driver do not receive points on their license. CDOT says most of the revenue collected goes back into funding the Speed Enforcement Program.
The cameras are marked and preceded by warning signs set at least 300 feet up the highway. If you happen to be speeding when passing the first photo location, you still have a shot at avoiding a fine. As long as you slow down enough before reaching the next camera, you can bring the average down to something legal.
License Plates Required
Unfortunately, this is yet another incentive for drivers in Colorado to run their cars without license plates or skip registering them at all (ahem, sovereign citizens), which is already a big problem in the state. License-plate readers used to enforce express-lane tolling have the same issue. We have contacted CDOT to ask what happens if a vehicle without a license plate speeds through the enforcement zone; we’ll update this story if we hear back.
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Ever since David was a wee Car and Driver intern, he has kept a spreadsheet listing all the vehicles he’s driven and tested. David really likes spreadsheets. He can parallel-park a school bus and once drove a Lincoln Town Car 63 mph in reverse. After taking a break from journalism to work on autonomous vehicles, he’s back writing for this and other automotive publications. When David’s not searching for the perfect used car, you can find him sampling the latest in gimmicky, limited-edition foodstuffs.
Colorado
Bonnie Brae Conoco in Denver for sale after more than 80 years of family ownership
When you walk inside the Conoco station at the corner of University Boulevard and Bonnie Brae Boulevard in Denver, you can’t help but notice the history on the walls.
“Here’s the 40s. The 50s and my dad and uncle in the 70s,” says owner Ken Wilson pointing to the pictures on the wall.
Ken is the third generation of the Wilson family to own the gas station and service center.
“Grandpa Ken started to lease this out in 1942. My dad bought the business from my grandpa and my uncle worked his whole career here for my dad and for me,” Ken recalls.
In all, the Wilson family has owned the Conoco station for more than 80 years.
“I started working here in 1978 when I was 12, just part time in the summers. I worked through high school and through college and then did my own thing, and I’ve been back here about 15 years,” said Ken.
“It means so much to our family. It’s been a great business.”
But Ken is the end of the road for the Wilson family ownership. In February, a for sale sign went up at the Bonnie Brae Conoco.
“We’re just looking now. We’re not in a rush. It’s not like we’re going to sell and be done this year. We’re going to get a price we want to get, and if it takes us years to do that’s okay,” he said.
Wilson has seen a lot of change during his time working at the station and service center.
“There aren’t a lot of garages anymore. They used to be everywhere. There were four of them on this block when I was a kid, he said.
When asked what he’ll miss most, Ken points to his relationship with his customers.
“I’ve had customers now where I actually waited on their grandparents. And then their parents. And now them.”
As for what his grandpa would say if he could see the place now, Ken says, “I think he’d say he was really proud of what we’ve done. Both my father, my uncle and myself. Hopefully he’s still hanging around here once in a while.”
Colorado
Colorado offers composite five-star 2028 wide receiver from Texas
The Colorado Buffaloes are still putting the finishing touches on their 2027 class over the next few months, but their 2028 recruiting plan continues to take shape.
Earlier this week, Deion Sanders’ staff extended an offer to one of the top prospects in the class of 2028, composite five-star wide receiver Jaylen Addai. Addai now holds 43 offers, including one from nearly every blue-blood program in the country.
247Sports’ Composite currently ranks Addai as the No. 12 overall prospect in the 2028 class, the No. 3 overall wide receiver and the top player from the state of Texas.
At 5-foot-11, 165 pounds, the Pearland, Texas native fits the mold of the modern-day receiver. He seems likely to fill into his frame given his youth. Addai is a multiple-sport athlete with elite athleticism on the field, on the basketball court and on the track.
Given how early it is in Addai’s recruitment, several teams are in contention for his commitment, with Notre Dame and Ohio State leading the way early. When the 2028 cycle picks up later this year, who really has a chance should come into focus, especially when visits begin.
Colorado’s 2028 class does not have any commitments yet, but has offers out to 28 different wide receiver prospects.
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Colorado
Data shows more than half of Colorado voters aren’t registered with a political party
DENVER (KDVR) — New data from the Colorado Secretary of State’s Office shows that more than half of Colorado voters are now registered as unaffiliated, meaning they are not registered with a political party.
With the primary election just weeks away, those voters will need to decide whether to participate in the Democratic or Republican primary.
Colorado operates under a semi-open primary system, allowing unaffiliated voters to choose which party’s primary they want to vote in. With unaffiliated voters now making up the majority of registered voters in the state, their choices will play a significant role in election outcomes.
According to the Colorado County Clerks Association, the trend has been building since 2004, with voters continuing to leave both the Democratic and Republican parties to register as unaffiliated.
While an unaffiliated voter’s ballot choices remain private, the party primary they participate in does become part of their public voter registration record.
Unaffiliated voters also face some limitations. They cannot participate in party caucuses and cannot sign petitions for party candidates.
“I think the largest reason why we have so many unaffiliated voters is because people are intensely unhappy with both political parties, and they don’t want to be a part of it,” Matt Crane, executive director of the Colorado County Clerks Association, said. “And now with the primaries, they really don’t have to make that choice. They can just vote and then move on and not have to worry about some of the baggage and garbage that comes with being a member of a political party.”
Election officials are reminding unaffiliated voters that they received two ballots in the mail: one for the Republican primary and one for the Democratic primary. Voters should return only one ballot. If both ballots are submitted, neither vote will be counted.
If an unaffiliated voter casts a ballot in-person, the clerk will ask them which ballot they would like to cast.
The Colorado County Clerks Association also reminded voters that ballots must be received by Election Day, with the exception of military and overseas voters. Voters planning to return their ballots by mail should send them by the Tuesday before Election Day, one week in advance, to ensure they arrive on time.
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